Sunday, October 3, 1999 Published at 12:39 GMT 13:39 UKWorld: EuropePolice confront Belgrade marchersOpposition leaders Vladan Batic, Zoran Djindjic and Cedomir Jovanovic march in BelgradeRiot police in the Serbian capital Belgrade have pushed back around 10,000 demonstrators marching in defiance of a ban on protests.

The Serbian authorities took action against the anti-government demonstrators on Friday after two nights of violent clashes between police and demonstrators.

On Saturday, the Beta news agency carried an open letter by 45 of the country's leading intellectuals saying that if the present government remained in power, the very existence of Serbian citizens came into question.

Without mentioning President Milosevic by name, their letter amounted to a demand for the end of his regime, and full support for the opposition groups.

The former chief commander of the Yugoslav Army, General Momcilo Perisic, who has joined the pro-democracy movement, warned that President Milosevic might try to use even more force to crack down on opponents.

He "will certainly try to use all means, including use of the army" against the opposition, General Perisic said.

The general said he thought a majority of the officers would not comply with possible orders to unleash force against the protesters.

There has been a concerted effort to show the strength of the opposition feeling over the past week. However the protests are nowhere near as big as the major pro-democracy rallies three years ago.

The Serbian Renewal Movement, headed by opposition veteran Vuk Draskovic, has not joined the protests so far, insisting that they could trigger civil war in Serbia.